Banishment
by Encyclopika
Summary: At the beginning of the universe, the endless expanse of space was shaped by 4 legendary Pokemon. In the midsts of this, a forbidden romance blossoms. Dethklokshipping
1. Chapter 1

***This is the original story written by me, Encyclopika, at . You may find very slight changes, but overall, the story is intact.***

Chap 1

When we were born, there was nothing but darkness for as far as the eye could see. In my dreams, I heard voices from the inky blackness. As I gained consciousness and the strength to open my eyes, I could see that I was the last to awaken. Floating in a tight circle, Arceus, with his sons, Dialga and Palkia, discussed their plans for a universe. The ability to create and the ability for that matter to change was all in our grasp, with Arceus, our father, calling the shots. As I drifted slowly towards the party, Arceus addressed me.

"Giratina! So, you've finally found the strength to awaken," he said, not quite condescending, but at the time, I knew no better. "We've already made plans. Unfortunately, your rule over antimatter is too unstable for my plans, so Palkia, our ruler of matter and space, shall aid me in creating a great and wide universe, as I've dreamt. And Dialga's rule of time will animate things, keeping it interesting and alive."

I looked at my so-called brothers. One was of a pearly white color, with pink designs decorating his body. His large, round shoulders sported large, mauve crystals, that I knew, harbored his powers. He stood upright on two, thick hind legs, and floated close to our father. By instinct, I knew him as the Palkia our father, Arceus, had mentioned. It was he who suggested to Arceus, "Then doesn't that make her useless?"

I gulped. Surely I did not want to be taken out of existence so quickly. However, before I could grovel for my life, my quieter brother spoke, "She could still be of use. I'm sure that all of your creating will leave no time for maintenance."

He was a diamond blue dragon, similar in height to my new found enemy, and stood proud on four strong legs. His body was decorated with steel, crystal-like protrusions, the one covering his wide chest holding his jewel of power. He faced me confidently, and gave me a quick, friendly smirk, giving me hope that I'd be spared.  
>However, Palkia, would not back down. "Maintenance will still leave her useless. She'll be sitting around with nothing to do for ages."<p>

"And I, too, brother, for all eternity," Dialga quipped. "I merely need to exist for time to move forward."

"Dialga has a point, Palkia, stand down," Arceus said, wanting to end the argument as soon as possible. In all respect, he was itching to begin his act of all creation. He then turned to me, setting in stone my place in his grand design. "Your realm shall reside opposite of Palkia's, and you must be sure to keep everything in order based on my commands."

"I understand father," I finally spoke. "Thank you."

He then turned away from me, and floated above us, looking into the abyss. There were not yet any stars, any galaxies; just pure blackness. He began to speak softly, his mind whirling, I could tell.

"The universe, as I have deamt, will be equally balanced. Silent and dark, but beautiful." Arceus began. It was one of the few things he ever said that made me excited. Though I never found my role in the whole process as important as the creation of space or time, I managed to feel somewhat elated to have been given a role at all. It was all thanks to Dialga, and from that act of kindness, I began a foundation of fondness.  
>I am only stating the story as it was. There's no use in hiding what is already known in the minds of all who inhabit our creation. However, little did I know, at that time, that my future ahead would be quite treacherous.<br>As Arceus spoke to us of his plans, Palkia, the one who should really have been listening, glared at me. Possibly, he must have wanted the task of managing all of space by himself, for reasons I'm still unsure of. Although I felt his stare burn into the scales on my back, I did not let it faze me. I was too happy to be alive. I snuck past Palkia's glare and propped myself confidently next to Dialga, who must have also been feeling my same happiness and excitement. We didn't speak, but his bright red eyes met mine. I gave him a silent 'thank you' and turned back to Arceus as he rambled. I felt Palkia's glare lift from my notice.

"We have much to accomplish in the next few millennia," Arceus announced. "But for now, give me light!"

With that command, Palkia moved past us, ahead of Arceus, and began expanding space as we knew it. He first brought his hands together, creating a small, black, perfectly spherical ball of energy. Arceus moved toward him, unveiling his elemental plates, and pouring much of their energy into the sphere. It expanded with this power, but Palkia kept it contained until he could no longer hold it stable. Arceus sensed this.

"You may let it go," Arceus murmured, and backed away as Palkia threw the ball far into the darkness. With no sound at all, the sphere exploded. It was terribly bright, but for some time, nothing rushed at us. However, slowly, small, hot balls of light whizzed past us. As the seconds wore on, more complicated rocks and larger stars flew by, until finally, the universe slowed its expansion. However, the universe continued to be in motion. All around us stars formed into clusters and further into galaxies. The four of us watched as stars and planets began to pass us wildly in a tornado of light. We were being sucked into a galaxy as is spread all around.

"Quickly, Palkia, we must make a home realm," Arceus said.

Palkia nodded, and gathering spare dust, ice, and rocks from the debris flying about our heads, forming a planet we later called Earth. However, Palkia took his time perfecting it, and in the meantime, Arceus forged a legendary castle, for us to reside in and make important decisions for the coming millennia. Most humans do not know of its existence, for it fell out of use before man acquired legendary tales from common Pokemon. We collectively referred to the castle as The Universe, for it was our main place of business at the time. Over the ages, it became luxurious, but in the times of only four creators – Arceus, and his children, Dialga, Palkia, and I – it was simply just a mountain range floating just above the Earth's (then-forming) atmosphere.  
>It was only in the early stages of the universe and Earth that Arceus was this happy and eager to stay as one unit, working together in close proximity. However, as all Pokemon of today know my story, that just could not be for very long.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Chap 2

Shortly after the castle was built, things calmed down. Boredom was upon me to the point of despair. As Arceus worked with Palkia sorting out the details, discussing how each atom would work, what each planet would contain, and how Earth would be ruled, Dialga and I did very little. For the time, the universe was young, and relatively still. Even with time rushing forward, all was quiet, so eerily quiet.

The castle itself was just as silent and dark. Though the inside was beautiful – white and violet tiles lined the hallways, porcelain pillars held up the ceilings – I could only make out these details by the starlight that filtered through the tall, open windows. I dared not explore the very insides of the castle, for they were too dark to see anything. So dark, in fact, that I figured the closed doors led to black holes. To pass the time, I patrolled the outer hallways that snaked around The Universe castle, never expecting to find anything.

"Bored?" Dialga asked one day as I passed through one of the lower halls. He was plainly residing in the hall, leaning a shoulder up against the wall, probably looking out the window directly ahead of him the whole time. Blue starlight from neighboring constellations casted a dramatic glow to his deep, ultramarine skin and bouncing streaks of light onto the walls from his silver chest plate.

His voice was sudden to me, as I had been lost in thought on my rounds. I jumped when I heard him, and seeing it was him, I immediately cowered, unable to make words. I eventually found some composure, and bashfully agreed, "Yes, quite."

His voice was smooth and young, and relaxed enough to calm my sudden rush of emotions and stupor.

"I guess whether one is daydreaming out of a window or down at the floor, it's all the same," he gestured to the window before him.

I nodded, only realizing he was talking about the two of us some time later.

"I've explored these hallways, too. I got tired of it," Dialga went on. "I decided to watch what Arceus and Palkia were doing." He looked back out the window as he said it, and I felt compelled to look out the window as well.

Approaching him cautiously, I stretched my neck so as not to invade any personal space in my curiosity. Unfortunately, all I saw was a sky full of blue and white stars. Palkia and Arceus were nowhere to be seen or heard. But the galaxy I saw outside was astonishing. Upon closer inspection, clouds of white dust sprinkled the background behind those stars. Bright planets lightyears away were reflecting back their phosphorescent glows back at Earth and The Universe castle.

"How does exploring the galaxy sound to you?" Dialga asked, again his voice reverberating through my thoughts and dousing them out, pulling me back into reality.

"Lovely," I said, beginning to feel comfortable in his presence. Leaning forward, I phased through the wall, as my ghostly powers allowed, and floated out into the expanse of space. It felt good to be outside, the light from a very close star laid its yellow rays upon my gray and black scales, as well as my golden ornaments, which reflected the light back at Dialga. Noticing this, I shifted my position, embarrassed, and frightened, thinking I had blinded him.

"You know," the Time master said, playfully annoyed, "Some of us need doors in order to go through walls."

With this, my cheeks became hot, and I was thankful my golden headdress covered much of my face. I laughed nervously and answered, "Oh! I didn't realize!"

He laughed at me, and I could tell he knew well of my bashful demeanor. "No matter, there's a door here." I followed him down the hall from outside, catching a glimpse of him with each passing window. Upon reaching the door, he kicked it open with one, silver-studded foot, and joined me in the starry heavens. Like me, the close star's rays bounced off his metallic ornaments, though never catching me directly in the eyes.

"Ahem!" came a familiar voice, and I reluctantly turned around to stare Palkia right in the face.

He seemed angry with us, though at that point, I didn't know why.

"You know, unlike you two, some of us have been working for hundreds of years!" he spat, really looking at me, but I paid no mind to it.

"My apologies, brother," Dialga greeted him, coming up close to show he meant no harm to the Space Titan. "We were actually coming out to see your marvelous work. You can't give all the credit to Father."

It was with that compliment, Palkia finished his brooding, and self pity. Instead, he turned meek, and happy. I could not believe, nor can I believe it now, but…I actually had competition for affections I, at that time, did not yet realize I even pined for.

"Thank you," Palkia answered, feeling fulfilled and ready to do another hundred year's worth of work if it meant hearing Dialga's kind compliments, I am sure. "But, anyway, Father wants to see us. The galaxies are finished, and he wants to move onto Earth. He says this is where things get complicated."

"Brainstorming, I guess," Dialga arched his neck to tell me.

"Maybe," Palkia added. "Anyway, it's this way, the middle of The Universe."

It was there my interest peaked. I had been roaming those halls for ages, I was psyched to find out what the center of the castle looked like. I could not imagine it though, as to be expected, for nothing existed at this time until it blinked into existence. However, even if I could imagine anything, I don't think my imagination could have come up with what I saw upon arriving at Arceus' grand hall, or rather, his own personal thinking room. As we passed over the tall towers and walls of the castle, I could see light coming from within, as if Palkia and Arceus had outfitted the halls with tiny stars to light the darkness. My attention was averted from this as we approached the room of interest.

It had no ceiling, and we simply lowered ourselves down to the tile floor, matching the hues of violet and white from the hallways. It was a large, round room, with a golden throne fit for only Arceus. Though it was big enough for any of us to sit, we knew better. Lighting the room was the light of fire, which lined the room in controlled sconces, though I was sure much of the illumination came from the close, yellow star, that I noticed from this angle, was the center of the solar system we had decided to call home-base. As I gawked at the sight of the expanse of this glorious room, I saw Dialga looking as well, mouth agape.

"Don't look too stunned," Arceus chuckled from across the room. "Come closer. We must discuss Earth."

I piped up a question that had been bugging me, "What about it?"

Arceus paused, and ignoring whatever rudeness he thought I meant, replied, "I want that planet to support life forces like ours."

"Wouldn't that cause…complications?" Dialga interjected.

Arceus answered, "Ones not as powerful as we are, not quite with the same powers, but still, to be merely living, is what I meant. That is why I have created another deity that I hope you will all welcome into our humble abode."

He turned his back on us, and with a flick of his head, motioned that our eyes meet a small, pink, feline-like presence that was floating beside him, just over his head. She was so small, that I had not seen her at first.

"Hello! My name is Mew," the pink kitten said to us.

"Mew will be my life's designer," Arceus mentioned. "She will come up with what every life form looks like, and coupled with my orders, also everything about them, with some leeway, of course. And then I will create them and send them to Earth to procreate and flourish."

It all sounded quite fantastical, but again, I found myself useless in this discussion. However, Arceus told us not to worry, and that he in fact wanted our input for more deities that would watch over and morph Earth in ways that would be suitable for life on its surface. Immediately the room echoed with our ideas. All three of us had something to say about Earth, which up until this point was nothing but a smoldering sphere of lava and poisonous gas.

"We need someone to tighten up the core!"

"There needs to be water, to cool down the atmosphere!"

"Then we'd need a team to control the atmosphere…"

"How about mountains, valleys, and plains for all varieties of life?"

Arceus spoke over us, "Okay! Okay! I understand much needs to be done to Earth before we can expect anyone to live there. Mew? Did you get those ideas down?"

"I did. I'm designing them now," Mew said. She had a sketch pad in hand, it seemed, and was drawing pictures as we shouted out ideas.

It was good to feel as part of a team. However, over the next few days, it would be back to boredom. Mew herself, like Palkia, became obsessed with her work. It was all she ever really spoke about. However, much unlike Palkia, she came up to me, and sometimes Dialga, for ideas. As I resumed my prowling throughout the hallways, Mew would catch up to me, and ask my advice.

"Well, the ones that need to control the weather…I can't quite think of anything," Mew confided in me. "Our Lord is expecting some rough drafts of all the needed hands today, but I just can't get these two."

"Two? Why not just have one deity control the atmosphere? Then there'd be no fighting," I asked.

Mew shook her head. "I think it'd be better as a team. I already told Arceus that I planned to have titans for land, ocean, and atmosphere formation. They should work fine, and we should get an even balance of everything!"

I nodded and went on to suggest, "Well, if they will control the atmosphere, then they ought to be able to fly or float."

Mew nodded, thinking. I never felt like I was much help, but Mew did come to me time and time again to seek my advice. However, when the new deities were born, Arceus did not summon Palkia, Dialga, or myself to meet them.

"When everything is settled on Earth, there shall be a Great Meeting," he told us once in passing. "Until then, just enjoy yourselves. The entire castle is accessible to you; just don't forget your duties."

Over the next several hundred years, I explored the rest of the castle, and watched as Earth changed. As I watched the transformation, Mew came and joined me.

"I know the Lord wants to wait, but I think you should get to know them," Mew said quietly while we watched, speaking of the titans below that worked to shape the Earth into its known, stable form.

"Well, what are they like?" I inquired.

"Well, I can't say they aren't hard-headed," Mew said, folding her arms, upset that her creations were not nearly as perfect as Arceus' own designs in the two of us. I worried that if she was already disappointed in the first batch of guardian designs, that the work load would eventually consume her. We had become great friends over the years, and, unbeknownst to Arceus, she often let me help her a lot in coming up with unique and beautiful designs. When there was no work to be done, Mew was silly and playful. To pass the time, she would engage me and Dialga in games of hide and seek and tag.

"Take it easy," I murmured at last. "It makes them different, and being unique can be a good thing."

"I guess. But I know they don't really like each other," Mew told me. "Groudon and Kyogre…they're always at each other's throats over how much ocean and how much land there should be on the Earth."

"I see. Well, what about the other one?"

"Heatran? He works alone. He's been working on getting the core stable. Meanwhile, Groudon and Kyogre battle it out. I think a mediator is in order."

She was always serious when it came to work.

"What do you have in mind?" I inquired.

"I…don't know," she answered bashfully as she turned away from me, and towards her room. "Whatever it is, it'll be big enough to intimidate them to come to some kind of agreement!"

"There you go!" I said, flashing a smile that she returned, tiredly, I admit.

"I guess if you're getting to work, I should, too," I said, and went to my own room as well.

High in a far away tower, the essence of the Reverse World resided. Small, and not completely functional, my room was almost like a tiny planetarium. The walls, with their mirror-like surfaces reflecting the whole universe and Earth, and gave the illusion that the space was a thousand times bigger than it actually was. In reality, the room was just big enough to fit my girth and stretch out my ghastly tentacles as they pointed at certain areas of the universe to control. To another observer, it would have seemed as though there was no way to tell what part of Space needed repairs. To me, however, I just knew. I always have, though in the great expanse of the true Reverse World problems are a lot more obvious.

So I got to work, though, at this point in history, there was little to do. Stars needed to die, black holes needed to be shifted. I also used this time to spy on Mew's creations, as I was simply curious as to what design she finally chose. Observing Earth, I caught glimpses of Kyogre as she breached, shooting Hydro Pumps at Groudon, who cowered behind great mountains he arose. Kyogre was a beautiful design, in my opinion – sleek and perfect for movement in the oceans she controlled, as I suggested. Groudon was heavy-set, tall, and intimidating, his red color surely expressing his attitude as he sent tremors into the deep to catch his adversary.

From my seat in the highest, most secluded tower of The Universe, I could see everything and control anything.


	3. Chapter 3

Chap 3

It was a few days before I saw Mew again. As I approached the Edge of The Universe, a platform-like extension of the floor of the castle where deities jumped between the castle and Earth, I spotted Mew with a large dragon I had never seen before. Sensing me, Mew turned around and greeted me with a smile.

"Giratina! Just in time! What do you think?" she asked, shifting my gaze from her tiny paws to the large, emerald dragon beside her.

He was larger than I, tipping his eyes down to meet mine, his snake-like form so much like me. I figured Mew had used me as a blueprint. His green body was more slender than mine, however, and was decorated with numerous yellow and black designs that seemed to match that of Kyogre and Groudon who still remained feuding below.

"This is Rayquaza, my newest deity. He's going to control the atmosphere and protect the Earth from the great star's harmful rays," Mew explained. In later years, Rayquaza's realm became known as the Ozone layer, for your reference.

"My lady," Rayquaza bowed his head to me. At first, I was shocked – I had never had anyone address me as such. I appreciated it all the same.

Smiling I said, "Perhaps he can also knock some sense into Groudon and Kyogre?"

Rayquaza snickered. Mew answered, "And I was just telling him about it!"

"I will do my best, my lady," Rayquaza bowed again to me. "Perhaps when I return we can talk more?"

With that, the emerald air titan descended to Earth, his thin body arching as he zoomed to the world below us. I watched him as he became smaller and disappeared into the red and auburn clouds of an ancient Earth. Lightening struck across the atmosphere, and thunder rumbled ever so slightly.

Mew interrupted my silence, "He seems to like you."

"Hm?" I inquired.

"He's very fond of you. I told him about you a lot, and meeting you, he seemed to really appreciate you even more," Mew explained.

"I felt that," I answered, distant.

Mew cocked her head, unsure as to what to make of my lackluster response to a suitable dragon's affections for me. However, my thoughts went elsewhere at the notion of feelings of that caliber, though I could not pinpoint where. My mind was blank, and yet I felt the urge to leave on a quest to find someone or something.

"You okay?" Mew asked.

I shook my head. "I probably haven't slept as well as I should. I will see you around the castle. Good work on Rayquaza – he seems very capable of the job you have set forth for him."

Mew gave me a worried, but appreciative smile as I turned and left the room. I was still unsure where my drive was coming from, and so, emerging into the inner halls, I just kept moving forward. The halls were empty and the silence was blaring. It was as if my ears had been completed plugged that not a decibel could penetrate my thoughts. However, that became untrue as the sound of water dripping into a deep pool caught my attention. It echoed throughout the hallway, each ripple of sound strengthening and pushing the one before it across the walls. As I approached closer, I happened across a room I had never seen before.

Phasing through the wall, as was my custom, I explored the room. It was a large expanse, with no inner walls. The pattern that adorned the enclosure matched that of the rest of the castle interior, and was lit with the glow of flames enclosed in their sconces. This chamber, unlike the many wide, open, and empty rooms, had something special. Covering most of the tile was a wide bath implanted into the floor. Oddly shaped, its rim was golden and snaked around the area, never making contact with the walls. In the middle of the large pool sat an elegant fountain that reached to the high ceiling, well above my head. From its gold, tower-like trunk sprouted water spouts. I spotted the one that was leaking small droplets of water following each other over the edge, plummeting down towards the floor together until they hit the water's surface with the familiar "ping".

I was so intrigued and focused on this nozzle that I was startled by the sudden screech of a handle being forced down from across the room, and again when the water crashed into my face. I heard a light-hearted chuckle as I stepped back from the fountain. I shook away the excess water from my face and peered past the fountain. I was shocked to see Dialga standing there, his foot still on the handle.

"I take it you've never been here before?" he asked as he floated towards me.

"No, I haven't. I appreciate the prank, by the way. Really, I do," I sarcastically quipped. He smirked, and stood next to me, his feet submerged in the dark water.

"Palkia comes in here a lot to wash away the dirt and rocks from forming planets," Dialga told me. "This liquid Arceus named "water" is a pure substance. It washes away all forms of grime."

"Does it, now?"

"Yes. I've been here a few times myself. It's almost magical, as if it also cleanses the soul," he explained, and dunked his head under the stream of water. "It also surprisingly tastes good."

I giggled and watched him enjoy the seemingly mystic elixir wash over his sapphire skin, and stream from the grooves in his silver plates like rivers in valleys. He backed up, expecting me to try, and I followed his example, trusting that the experience would be as sensational as he made it out to be.

I had never actually felt anything like it before, the sensitivity of my flesh under my scales. The water was cool, and it seeped between each scale it encountered on its way down my body. The feeling was exhilarating at first, but then became relaxing. I closed my eyes, and just listened to the sound the rushing water made at it crashed onto me and the water below my girth. I opened my mouth guard to let the water completely reach my face.

"You seem to be enjoying it," Dialga said as he joined me under the waterfall. He got very close to me, I could sense. His foreleg brushed past one of my spikes and rested against my body. The slight pressure he exerted against the scales in the vicinity of his leg caused my heart to skip a beat. I had never been touched before this moment, and his closeness made me nervous, yet at ease.

As we stood under the water, my heart and my thoughts began to race. It was then I finally realized that he was the one I wanted to find before. I wondered to myself if he felt the same as I did. If he had done it on purpose. Or if he thought nothing of it. He seemed to be so much more concerned with letting the water droplets snake down his scales. I heard him let out a deep sigh, his dragon voice having the sigh turn into a bit of a grunt. I opened my eyes at this sound, and again I was taken aback by his godly majesty. The water flowing over him animated his otherwise still body, and the orange glow from the sconces all around us seemed to make him radiate with power.

I gulped as another shot of Butterfree fluttered into my chest. At the time, these feelings were not named, and so I stood, baffled at myself and felt very awkward. Dialga backed away from me and opened his eyes, meeting my gaze. I knew I was staring, and quickly shifted my eyes down at the pool of water below us.

"Your gold plates are much shinier, now," Dialga pointed out.

"Oh! Well, that's good. Who knew I was so filthy!" I said, keeping the conversation going.

"Exactly, I had no idea either. After all, of the three of us, I do the least amount of work," Dialga said, shaking his head with a smile.

I giggled, and finally felt myself calming down. However, I swiftly took this opportunity to escape.

"Speaking of work," I caught on to the reminder, "I should probably do mine, right about now."

I turned to leave and floated towards the wall I phased through beforehand.

"Oh, okay," was his response.

It was not as if I wanted to leave, but the fear of awkward silence would have certainly turned the otherwise wonderful experience sour. Dialga was truly the winner of my thoughts for many days to come after that moment. I relished in my newfound feelings, coming to enjoy the excitement they stirred throughout my entire body. Some days I would curl into my room, and enjoy imaginary encounters with him.

I would also ponder them. What was their function, exactly? Were they a byproduct of being alive? Could they possibly be a mistake? I did not want to ask Arceus about it. He was far too busy, far too serious, far too self-absorbed to hear of it. Most of all, I feared he'd take those feelings away from me, if, for whatever reason, they were a mistake. So, I kept them a secret. Whenever I saw Dialga, I tried to act normal, though I had bashfully forgotten how to act around him, and to my displeasure, I attempted to avoid him, for fear that my feelings for him would become public.

Over the next few hundred years, Mew created a great menagerie of deities. The fighting between Kyogre and Groudon had become so great, that Rayquaza had no choice but to put them both to sleep. Mew was saddened by this, but was glad that things could finally continue to progress. With that, she created a diety of the moon, named Cresselia, which would control the ebb and flow of the water that covered the planet. Palkia had added a rocky satellite to the Earth around this time, primarily to brighten the dark side of the world that could not catch the Great Star's rays. Mew and Rayquaza observed that its gravitational pull affected Kyogre's seas, so made it Cresselia's tool to do her duties.

Mew also created Lugia and Ho-oh, two bird-like Pokemon that would help Rayquaza control the weather that had begun to appear within the Earth's atmosphere. The movement of the seas, the magnetic shifts of the core, and the warmth of the Great Star concocted great thunder storms, ice caps at both poles of the Earth, and majestic clouds. However, order was needed, and so Lugia and Ho-oh balanced the amounts of rain and sun different locations received. Arceus ordered that each habitat be different for his plethora of lesser-beings to live, flourish, and change on their own.

As all of this happened, I kept more and more to myself. After all, I was not needed. My duties were not with the Earth, but rather, the great expanse of emptiness that surrounded it. Mew also had little time to give me, though, every time she saw me, she attempted to speak with me, only to be dragged away by her own ideas for new deities and lesser beings she was finally able to begin creating. I did not mind. I was content with my own thoughts and going about a mundane life as everything around me changed. At the time, I did not realize how different everything had become, and how cast into the shadows my existence had become as new, and powerful deities began roaming the halls I no longer wished to float through. Things had become boring, and I began to become detached from reality in my intense boredom. Little did I know that soon I would be begging for my scheduled, insipid life back.


	4. Chapter 4

Chap 4

As the years rolled by, I found myself spending more and more time in my room, balancing black holes, super novas, and depleting gravitational pulls, as well as enjoying my own thoughts. It was not until many years later that Mew suddenly appeared, and shook her head at me in a nuance of disgust.

"What?" I asked.

She had found me curled up like an Ekans, relaxing on my stone floor doing nothing.

"Just, haven't seen you in forever," she complained. "What have you been doing?"

"My job," I quickly answered.

"How come you don't come out anymore?"

She was whining, and I honestly did not have the slightest clue how to articulate what was really going through my head. To be honest, I don't quite know what happened to me during those years. I had found myself better preoccupied with fantasies than reality. I did not even feel the years pass by, in actuality. However, I could not find the words to tell this to Mew, who probably would not understand or be hurt by the fact that I did not openly come to her as she had done with me.

"The castle just bores me," I came up with an excuse.

Mew had a counter for me, as I expected. "Well, there are plenty of new Pokemon for you to meet now!"

"I thought Arceus didn't want us all to gather until Earth was finalized?" I was truly resisting her. I'm not quite sure what was driving this childish struggle. I must have been feeling too bashful, yet too proud to show myself after such a long absence.

Mew continued to pester me, though. "It's not strict, he just doesn't want to have a huge meet and greet quite yet."

She had beaten me. I did not have another good reason for staying in my coil, and she fruitlessly tugged on my gold horns. "Just come down with me! I'll introduce you!"

I finally gave in when I said, "Fine, fine, I'll come with you. Who's new?"

As I reluctantly uncoiled myself and phased through the wall of my domain, Mew quickly teleported to greet me on the other side. The great expanse of space had not changed very much from when I last saw it in person. It was still an inky blackness penetrated by the brilliance of stars thousands of light-years away. However, passing my tower, the rays of light from the Great Star reflected off a new Earth as it came into view. It was drastically different than I had imagined. It was pleasantly blue and green now with gentle whites on its ice caps. Pleasant clouds wisped over its surface lazily. It was so peaceful to look at, so mesmerizing to experience. Mew came up to my side and murmured, "See? You missed a lot."

Mind you, the Earth was still not like it is today, what with the continents in vastly different places and such. But it certainly looked a lot more hospitable. It was the gem of the solar system.

"Many more deities have joined the group," Mew said, pulling me towards The Universe's ceiling. We both found our respective ways inside. "There is a Pokemon for every working of the Earth."

"And I'm sure you want me to meet them all, yes?" I asked with a nuance of sarcasm, as I knew Mew too well to be serious in asking such a thing.

"Of course!" she giggled. "You're just in time. The ladies usually gather by the Fountain at this time. It's the perfect opportunity for you to meet them all at once."

When we finally arrived at the Fountain, I instantly recognized it as the very same place I last spent time with Dialga. However, the room itself was vastly different. Though the fountain was still a golden tower adorned with water spouts that now spewed the relaxing substance continuously, the room itself was much brighter. The ceiling itself was illuminated with electric power fueled from a source unbeknownst to me and brightened the entire room so that not an inch of it was shrouded in mysterious darkness. It was for this reason my opinion of the room changed and I secretly wanted it to change back into the barely-lit room I saved in my memory. The room also reverberated with the sound of the water crashing unto itself from the fountain and the chatter from the Pokemon enjoying its refreshing qualities.

Mew led me closer to them. As I was not hard to miss, they all looked up and stared as we approached.

"Hey, girls!" Mew greeted them familiarly, which was already making me feel uncomfortable, but I kept quiet and in place so as not to draw any more attention to myself. The gaggle of deities were all bird-shaped, though it appeared to be the only thing they held in common. One was very beautiful, covered in sapphire-colored feathers and a long, shiny tail. Her head crest rested just above her deep, red eyes before her small face concluded into a small beak. Another was yellow and black with spiky feathers. Everything about her seemed jagged. Behind them sat a yellow bird almost consumed in fire, but her eyes were gentle and mysterious.

"Gira, these are the Legendary Bird trio who help out Lugia with the weather of Earth. You'll meet him later, but this is Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres," Mew introduced them, pointing to the blue one, the yellow one, and the fiery one respectfully. "And girls, this is Giratina! She's the mistress of anti-matter. She helps Palkia maintain the universe outside of Earth."

The three bowed their heads, welcoming me. For a moment I felt at ease, that is, until I heard a haughty voice chime in from behind the fountain, "Helping Palkia? I didn't know Palkia needed help. The cosmos seem ever so still!"

From behind the fountain emerged another bird, though she seemed larger in every way to the other birds. I have to admit, she was beautifully rainbow-colored, though her eyes troubled me in the way they glared.

"You would be surprised," I finally spoke.

"Perhaps I would," she said in a condescending tone.

"Gira, this is Ho-oh," Mew introduced her. "She works on the opposite of Lugia as a lack of weather and the beauty of nature."

"I also spread around the joys of Arceus' creation that is the Earth!" she added, though I could already tell she was fluffing up her duties to be more noble and stunning than they actually were. Nevertheless, I tried my best to be courteous.

"So tell us what exactly it is that you do in space that Palkia cannot take care of?" Ho-oh challenged.

As annoying as she was, I preferred to shift my answers to the other three birds who seemed genuinely intrigued by me. I answered, "I work on the dimension opposite of this one. Black holes, the remnants of dead stars all over the galaxy, are where these dimensions connect. It is my duty to ensure that their power and diameters stay constant. It is a round-the-clock kind of responsibility. Should they become unstable, they could collapse both dimensions. I also need to make sure Palkia does not create any matter, for it is forbidden and could also rupture the balance between our dimensions, though he seems to abide by this very well."

Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres were so intrigued by my tiny science lesson that they seemed to lean in on every word. Although Ho-oh was listening, she did not seem to believe a word I was saying. Instead, she put me down.

"So, you're a "behind-the-scenes" kind of worker, yes?"

"I suppose you could say that," I answered, at that time not really realizing how condescending she was being. Mew was noticing it though; I could see the confused, yet defensive face she was giving Ho-oh.

The rainbow mistress sighed, "Well, then I just don't understand. Dialga told us about you, and how impressive your work was, but you seem kind of useless to me. I mean, you rule over a dimension none of us will ever go or enjoy!"

I perked up for a split second at the sound of Dialga's name and Ho-oh took notice of it before I retaliated the rest of her sentence with bared teeth.

"Okay, Ho-oh, I think that's enough," Mew stated, trying to get between us. I was still baring my teeth at the rainbow hawk, but I never intended to us them. Ho-oh only elevated her beak in a slight smirk, having already found the right buttons to push. She quickly recomposed herself and angled her neck so as to face Mew.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I've been kind of moody and, dare I say it, a bit jealous, lately," Ho-oh confided in us.

Mew softened, and with the desire to please, asked, "About what?"

"I desire my own band of helpers," Ho-oh said. "It's not fair that Lugia and I are on the same plane of importance, but he gets a small army while I work alone! I hate it!"

I sealed my fate with what jumped out of my consciousness right then and there.

"Why would you require assistance?" I asked coyly. "Your job is simpler than those you consider below you. I would think that Lugia could just as easily retain his weather-making for another rotation of Earth, wouldn't you agree?"

The legendary birds snickered and Mew shrugged. Though I was proud of myself for showing her up, we both glared at each other. It was true either one of our jobs could have been taken up by another deity, but it was principle to Mew not to overwork anyone and promote teamwork. I always thought it was a good thing Ho-oh and I did not share the same field of work – in the end we might have just killed each other instead.

I left after I made my point. Ho-oh had no comeback for me. She either decided to ignore my comments, or secretly agree. In any case, I vowed from then on to make friends, not enemies, though it seemed to me the making of enemies was never my fault. I also, to this day, will never understand Ho-oh's initial malevolence towards me. She had never met me, after all, yet she tried her hardest to show me up. I have cracked it down to her feelings of insignificance. After all, she kept asking for her own flock like Lugia's to no avail. Being a bully seemed to be in her favor.

However, what was on my mind immediately after leaving was what she had said about Dialga. He had apparently been saying good things about me, even after all the time I remained missing. I tried not to let my feelings persuade me into thinking he must have missed me, even just a little, or that it was only him saying those things. Nevertheless, I wanted to see him. I had been fooling myself that my imagination was enough all this time, but, just the thought that he might actually have fostered a special liking for me was enough for me to slither among the extensive halls of the Universe Castle to find him.


	5. Chapter 5

Chap 5

As I scoured the halls, not a thought ran through my mind until I finally found Dialga. He was in a dimly-lit hallway all by himself, lonely, his head down looking at his steel-studded feet as he walked slowly. He could feel my presence and looked up, almost shocked to see me. I drifted towards him.

"Giratina?" he said. "I haven't seen you in ages…truly, ages."

I smirked, for what he had said was true. I had not left my tower in eons. However, I recomposed myself, and looked down at the tiled floor, bashful. "I know. I apologize for my long absence."

"Walk with me?" he asked. I looked up, completely dumbfounded, unable to really believe the message my ears were telling me. Unfortunately, I think he took my flabbergasted look as a practical joke, and corrected himself with a smirk. "Or, float, rather."

I laughed lightly, feeling comfortable with him, as if hundreds of years did not span the space and time between our last meeting and this one. I turned myself around to be next to him, and he continued to walk his initial path, this time his head up and eyes focused in on me.

"So…what have you been doing all this time?" he inquired.

"Just my responsibilities," I answered. "I know it sounds extreme, but all throughout my absence, I was simply doing my work."

Though this was the truth for the most part, Dialga inquired further. "Was there an unusually high rate of star death? Was Palkia slacking?"

He was right to ask these questions. After all, it was at this point that I felt alone in my yearning for Dialga. I had never even heard of this feeling; I did not even know if it was supposed to exist! Both Mew and Arceus were the grand creators of all tangible things and even all thoughts. Anything one can imagine, it was their doing, one way or another. Though I had never been told about the other feelings I had experienced up until this point – friendship, jealousy, animosity, confusion, happiness – love was truly all its own entity. So strong was it that it pulled in other emotions that, at that point in my inexperience, did not seem to fit well together, like happiness, sadness, and pain. I would have thought we would have been informed about this powerful emotion.

How was I supposed to explain this to Dialga, though? What if I were the only one that felt this way? As one can imagine, love is a terribly difficult thing to describe when the notion of emotions was merely creation's residue.

"No," I answered finally after a second of thought. "I just…did not want to come out."

"Why?" he pressured. "I know that when you went away the Universe was still dark, but you missed seeing it evolve into what it is now. It was actually pretty marvelous."

"I'm sure it was," I said softly, lingering in the thought. "I was content with myself for a long while, that's all."

I wanted to explain it to him so badly, for no more reason than to quell his curiosity. We had stopped walking, and he stared at me earnestly, knowing I held a secret deep in my heart. I felt, at that moment, that he would understand if I tried to construe what I actually did all that time away.

"Do you ever dream awake? Sleep, almost, though you are more aware of your surroundings as you go about a routine?" I asked him, trying my utmost hardest to make this clear.

He smiled at me. "All the time. My mind is light-years away from my body when I walk these endless halls."

In my mind, I was relieved, but on the outside, I did not let this show. Thinking back to those years I lay on the floor of my room, dreaming up amorous encounters with the dragon that stood before me, twisting my body in excitement, and reveling in my happiness, I felt sadness, knowing that these feelings would probably not be mutual. I just hovered where I was, unable to look him in the face.

"Well, that's what I was doing after my work was complete," I admitted. "I just did not want to be disturbed."

I felt so selfish for saying it, but Dialga seemed to be pleased he heard the truth.

"Sounds like a good idea," Dialga spoke, shattering my self-consciousness.

"Oh, perhaps not," I said in response, trying to be less serious. "All those years, I did not get as much exercise as you did."

He laughed whole-heartedly, stomping his foot in amusement. "I suppose you are right."

He finished laughing and smiled at me, I guessed, then, seeing a friend in me. He looked away thinking for a moment and then turned his head again toward me.

"You know, we should probably spend more time together," he offered. "We were created at the beginning of it all, but I barely know you. And I have nothing to do, no business anywhere. I'd like to have a friend like you do with Mew, _with you_."

I was surprised to hear this. Though I'm sure Mew introduced him to the other legendaries as they appeared, like me, he was a loner in his own thoughts, and drifted among the hallways alone. I blushed at the offer, ecstatic that all of my imaginary encounters with him might actually come true. However, I decided to give him what he wanted – a friend.

"Well, that's…very formal," I poked fun at him.

He smirked in embarrassment. "It could explain why you'd be my first _real_ friend."

I smirked. He was awkward with this, as if he had never spoken to anyone until this very moment, though it just seemed to be in his nature. As much as I found him to be smooth and admirable, he was just as clumsy as I was in this situation. "Well, I thought we were already friends."

We joked like this for a bit more. After we were through poking fun at ourselves, we spoke about the other deities. As I suspected, Dialga had met them all individually already. He had even met Kyogre and Groudon before they went to sleep.

"They'll wake up again for the Meet and Greet and then go right back, probably," Dialga said, his shoulders quivered under his giggling about the ordeal.

He had also met Rayquaza more in depth than I had.

"He seems to admire your strength very much. I bet you could make a friend out of him very quickly. Maybe one day we can all spend time together," Dialga went on. "Just because he lives in Earth's ozone layer, doesn't mean he isn't a "down-to-Earth" guy."

However, it became apparent, as he spoke about the other legendaries he met (and sort of introduced their personalities to me) that he had not yet met Ho-oh.

"No, I've actually never spoken to her," Dialga answered my inquiry about the bird.

"Well, maybe you're better off," I huffed, remembering my encounter with her not too long ago. I grit my teeth just thinking about the audacity she had to speak to me the way she did. I am humble at my core, even now, but the disrespect was simply uncalled for.

"And why is that?"

"She's just…rude!" I said, finally finding a word that was appropriate. "And a bit annoying, spoiled, selfish…"

"I'm sure she has some good qualities," Dialga reassured me.

"Well, she sure didn't show them to me."

"You two probably got off on the wrong foot. I bet if you start over, you'll be okay."

I looked up to him, my smile hidden behind my gold plates. One of the most admirable things I learned about Dialga that day was that he saw the good in everyone, with time. With his encouragement, I decided to be the bigger girl, and "start over" with Ho-oh, as Dialga suggested. It would have made Mew happy, at the very least, and gotten an enemy off my back.

…

I began to venture the halls again, meeting up with other deities as they went about their business. There eventually came a time when I choked up enough courage to talk to Ho-oh again. She always looked so angry, but I decided it was just the shape of her eyes. She was always so nice to Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres, that I figured perhaps she had gotten over the fact she did her work alone or maybe she realized she was just one bird in the Weather Flock, as Dialga and I began referring to the group comprised of Lugia, his trio of hens, _and_ Ho-oh.

I approached her once in the Fountain room as she chirped about some unimportant matter I forget now to Articuno. She stopped when she realized the ice bird was staring at me and turned around, her happy expression turning sour.

"And what do you want?" she asked bitterly. I could already see this was not going to end well, but I went through with it anyway, for the sake of us all.

I tried to be as abrupt and confident as possible. "Look, Ho-oh, I know we've had our differences, and probably got off on the wrong foot. If you'd like, _I'd_ like to start over. I think we could be friends."

"Well, I don't think that," Ho-oh stated quickly, turning away from me, dismissing the conversation completely.

Before she could resume her chat with Articuno, who was increasingly looking as if she'd fly away and moment from this disaster waiting to happen, I asked, "Well, why?"

"You said it yourself. We started off on the wrong foot, and that's the way we're walking now," she said a matter-of-factly. It was so irritating, but I kept my composure. "Besides, why would I want to be friends with a little dragon girl, for?"

"Why not?" I asked, truly wanting to hear her miraculous reasoning in having an enemy rather than a friend.

"Because you're rude and useless, as far as I can see," she spat. "We're all supposed to have jobs in the natural world, and you don't. I'd say 'oh! I'm friends with Giratina!' and not only would the poor sap not even know who I was talking about but then they'd ask 'oh, what does she do?' and I'd have to answer 'nothing at all important. She just spends eons up in her tower'."

It was at that moment that I aborted all attempts of being friendly with her. I knew from then on that if we ever crossed paths, there would be tension.

"Oh, you're right. I suppose if that's true, we'd have even more in common," I quipped, hitting her right where it hurt.

I turned and left, having said what I had to say. Ho-oh, on the other hand, was not finished, and called after me, "Like I said! You're rude! Go spend another eternity in your tower so that it will be easier to forget you."

…

I later on spoke with Dialga about my encounter with Ho-oh, and he sighed.

"I actually met her today," he told me as we walked one of the dark halls. "She didn't seem like that at all. In fact, she was a bit _too_ nice."

I would later find out exactly how Ho-oh acted when she did not think I was around. Her flirty personality only disgusted me more, and the more I witnessed her actions around other deities, the more I realized she favored the males. When I eventually met Regice, I found a friend I could really rant and rave about how much I disliked Ho-oh, and Regice would comeback with her own experiences with the prissy rainbow bird. Luckily for Regice, though, she had her brothers, Registeel and Regirock, to help her when Ho-oh felt like belittling someone who wouldn't fight back like I would. Someone who did not see right through her, like I did.

I chalked her up to be a strong-willed, yet pathetic deity. Her want for her independence from Lugia was troubling and straining Mew, who could not find a use for three more deities under Ho-oh's wing. For this, she probably felt very alone, not making the connection that she belonged in Lugia's flock, not apart from it. And for that, I felt sorry for her, but I would never have gone up to her and made her realize it, for she was, for all intents and purposes, a bully. She put herself on a pedestal by belittling other females of their roles in the world and universe, or cracking down on their character flaws when she possessed so many. When I brought this up to Mew, she shrugged.

The pink feline was tired of the complicated relations we had all made and had more important things to do.

"I would just ignore her, then," was Mew's best advice.

"Why do you think I spend almost all of my time in this tower?" I asked, laying on the floor, defeated.

"Well, you can't do that either. It just gives her something to embarrass you about," she said. "But I am really, really busy coming up with forms to fill all of the complex niches of Earth. You all will have to sort out your problems on your own. I'm sorry, Gira."

"It's all right. I just wanted you to know what's happening so you don't get too upset."

…

I was floating along through the halls one day afterward, when I heard Dialga's voice, and sped up to catch up to him. Dialga was so friendly and upon passing Ho-oh in the hall, he greeted her, as he always did, but when I saw how she acted around him, my blood boiled. She curled up to him, her eyes drooping suggestively.

"Well, hey there, strong dragon boy," she greeted.

Though I was relieved he backed away somewhat from her advances, seemingly regretting even saying anything to her, I could not help feeling jealous. Why couldn't I be that confident? Why couldn't I tell him that I thought he was strong and kind? That I had indescribable feelings for him? Why?

I hid in the shadows as she continued to bother him, stopping myself from getting between them and saving him. I would have loved to tell her to go away, but the thought of her belittling me in front of Dialga stopped me.

"Oh, I've seen you hanging around with that gray dragon girl…oh, what's her name?" she pretended to forget me like an insignificant speck of dust, though I'm sure of every deity at the time, she knew my name best.

Dialga, oblivious to her antics, filled in for her, "Giratina?"

"Ah, yes, Giratina! I've seen you hanging out with her a lot," she mentioned. "Why would you associate yourself with such a rude and abrasive girl?"

"I never found her to have any of those qualities," Dialga said quietly, confused as to what Ho-oh was getting at.

"Oh? You don't see her come and berate me over my duties? She tortures poor Regice with her boring stories, and Mew can't stand her!" Ho-oh lied.

I just stared from the shadows. Why was she doing this? She hadn't actually come up to me in a long time, so I supposed she had had enough of me being able to stick up for myself, so she simply did it behind my back. I wondered if she did this with everyone, or if she was specifically targeting Dialga.

"Ho-oh," Dialga said, his voice becoming stern. "None of that is true. If you know I spend ample time with Giratina, then you should know I probably know her and understand her more than you could even hope to. Do not spread careless rumors about her, or you and I may not get along, either."

I could have cried at that moment with happiness, feeling my heart overflow with bliss. Dialga was my hero, among other proud titles. With his statement said, he turned away from the rainbow bird, and continued down the hall. I smiled, and dissolved further into the shadows, not wanting to let either know I had been spying.

As I continued down the hall the other way, a new enemy presented himself as he blocked the way further down.

"What are you doing mindlessly floating the halls? Shouldn't you be up in the tower taking care of your duties?" Palkia was there, attempting to berate me.

I would not take this, not with the certain confidence boost dear Dialga had afforded me, though unknowingly.

"I have spent eons up in that tower," I informed him, "And I can assure you, as random as star death appears to others, I feel as though there's a pattern, and I-"

"I don't want to hear about that, as long as it gets done," he bellowed.

I became cross. "You're not my boss, Palkia, we are merely co-workers. What? Are you bored?"

He grit his teeth at me, and I knew then that was one of the problems he had with me. "I should be responsible for taking care of all matter, even anti-matter. Why the heck were you even created?"

Now he was hitting my weak point, and through my hurt, I had to wonder why he was only complaining again about this so much time after we were born. So I inquired.

"I deserve to have that position!" he roared.

"Then you should probably talk to Arceus about it, not find me and yell at me about it, because I could care less," I argued. "Oh, but that's right. Arceus already made his decision millennia ago, so I suppose I'm here to stay."

I supposed Ho-oh's attitude was rubbing off on me. He balled his claws up into fists, and grit his teeth at me even more, "Then get up there and do that job."

This wasn't getting anywhere and I was starting to wonder about his intentions as he attempted to get past me.

"Why do you not want me around?" I asked. "Has it…"

I started to dig in my memory. Palkia and I had not really spoken since the Universe was created and of course, for all the eons I was gone, we never saw each other, but, for the times we did, he always seemed unpleasant towards me.

"Has it anything to do with Dialga?" I asked.

Palkia ignored my question and simply walked past me, grumbling to himself, but I knew I had hit another sensitive spot. I could only imagine the quality time the Dragon duo spent while I was away. However, now that I was back, Dialga spent a lot of time with me. I'm sure that rubbed Palkia the wrong way, but I was too selfish to care at that moment. I really did want Dialga all to myself.

However, following these events, the torture only continued, and it didn't take long for the berating from both Ho-oh and Palkia to break me. Following Mew's advice, I avoided Ho-oh, but that also meant that the Fountain Room became a place off limits to me. The halls were a stressful place to be, for Palkia could have been lurking in any one, ready to remind me about my duties, even if I had already spent years stabilizing one or more star deaths. There came a group of years where I simply stayed put in my tower, too exhausted to deal with either one of them for some time.

But I wouldn't let them bring me down, and eventually, after a much shorter time, I came out of hiding and confidently roamed the halls once again. I visited the Fountain room, despite the mocking I heard from Ho-oh about my dirty gold plates and scales. However, as I ignored them, their comments wore me down.

"I can't wait for the Meet and Greet. It's coming up, Mew told me," Dialga told me at some point during this cruel time period. He had been my protector all a while, but he could not always be there and I actually preferred to stick up for myself. I did not want it to get into their heads that I was a weakling that needed supervision.

"Oh, so it is," I said quietly, not really wanting to talk about it. I stared out into the black, starry expanse beyond the castle's window whose sill I rested my head lazily. Dialga was only a few feet from me by the next window to my left.

"Why so glum?" he asked, picking up on my tired tone of voice.

I answered nonchalantly, "I'm not going to that."

Dialga was taken aback, twisting his neck so as to look at me squarely. I felt his eyes burning with confusion, and I looked at him sullenly.

"Well…why not?"

"Because I don't want to be there to remind Ho-oh and Palkia to tell all the mortal Pokemon that I'm an evil thing never to be approached."

"You think they would do such a thing?"

"I am positive."

Dialga looked down at his window sill, knowing that I had good reason for thinking this. All Palkia wanted was for me to disappear for selfish reasons, and Ho-oh wanted me around to make it seem like she was actually more important than one of Arceus' children. It was maddening. I would have rathered give Palkia what he wanted if it meant taking away from Ho-oh.

"I would like it very much if you came anyway," Dialga told me, his voice sad and almost pleading. "Though I am acquainted with everyone, and I consider Lugia and Rayquaza very good friends, I…actually consider you, somewhat of a…_best_ friend."

He seemed to settle begrudgingly on that phrase, as if he saw me as more than even that. But like me, I supposed long after the fact, he just didn't know the word. It didn't yet exist.

I sighed, and seeing that his small pep talk did not really help his case, he pressured me further, "What if I promised to stay by your side the whole time?"

I looked up at him.

"I'll make sure they don't bother you," he vowed.

I smiled shyly. Having him near for the duration of the party would have certainly lifted my spirits, no matter how much Ho-oh and Palkia tried to badger me. I accepted these terms, staring into his ruby eyes adoringly. I did not even realize he had been staring back.


	6. Chapter 6

Chap 6

With every passing year, I felt more and more confident to be a part of the Universe. As I spent more time with Dialga, I eventually spent more time with Lugia and Rayquaza. I felt as though I finally had a place to be. Both Lugia and Rayquaza took a liking to me, and eventually we hung out without Dialga at times. To my delight, they did not have a very strong liking for Ho-oh or Palkia, either.

"There's just something strange with Palkia," Rayquaza told me once as we sat at the Launch Pad. We had coiled in the light of the Sun, talking about Earth. "He's a loner and we like to invite him to watch the meteor showers on Earth sometimes, but he just…doesn't pay any attention to Lugia or me. He's always trying to get Dialga's attention."

I quirked an eyebrow, though I wasn't truly confused. I always knew Palkia had a soft spot for his brother, and wanted nothing more than to impress him. Even though we were all born at the same time, Palkia acted more like a "little" brother to Dialga, than an equal. Whenever Dialga and I had alone time, Palkia would find us, and show Dialga how he made stars. Dialga would always simply humor him, gazing in fake awe of the trick he'd seen thousands of times before. I wouldn't bend so easy and always floated in place with a sour look on my face. Palkia never cared for my approval, but he did care that Dialga got closer to me, laughed more with me, and generally spent more time with me.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, I've noticed that, too," I told Rayquaza. "I always hoped it would wear off, but it seems it never will."

I shook my head, and Rayquaza giggled. Like Dialga, Rayquaza would tell me often how he enjoyed the time we spent together. Unfortunately for him, though I found him a valuable friend, I didn't feel as strongly about it. When he said it, I didn't feel as genuinely happy as when Dialga said it.

However, it was still nice to have real friends, finally, even if the annoyance and badgering from my enemies never let up. For that, I had Dialga.

As time ticked ever closer to the Great Meet and Greet, Ho-oh and Palkia appeared more and more trying to give me reasons not to attend. My meetings with Palkia were always the same, as if they were scripted or I had a very bad case of déjà vu.

The pearl dragon would stomp his feet as he passed me in the hall as he ensured that the rotation of the planets were correct, and that no meteors came within many light-years of the castle, in preparation for the Meet and Greet. He was always angered by the sight of me.

He would then mutter, "Better not see you there."

And I would say, "Why not?" as if I hadn't a clue.

He would then whip around, furious. "Because we don't need you! You have to stay up in your tower and make sure no stars die too close to Earth!"

I would chuckle and reply, "Then I suppose you'll be on guard duty for pesky asteroids?" That would truly ruffle his wings, make him ball his fists, and swing his tail around. Usually he'd just walk away defeated, but one day, that didn't happen.

Instead he stood his ground, got right up in my face and grit his teeth, "Actually, it's because no mortal wants to meet the goddess of evil and death."

My mouth was agape, but no words came out for a few seconds. This was truly unlike Palkia to come up with lies on the spot. As much as we disliked each other, I respected Palkia in that he was simple - not in an unintelligent way, but unpretentious. He knew what he wanted, and instead of beating around the bush, lying, and coming up with complex excuses, he'd simply tell it to your face, no matter how insulting it might sound. In all the years we had been getting under each other's scales, never once did Palkia say something to only be mean. His comments were usually rude out of his wanting his way, and he was obviously new at the game, for it only took me a second after the shock to retaliate.

"Oh, so, now I'm the ruler of death, too? Says who? Mew never said anything about it," I quipped sarcastically.

"Well, think about it," he said, gesturing in my direction, an invitation to do as he suggested. "You're the goddess of antimatter, which is the opposite of matter. You know what happens when the two come together, right?"

"They both disappear," I answered, not amused. Little did he know that I had been close enough to Dialga for us to touch, and so his theory crumbled when I tapped him on the head with my tail.

"I guess that solves that mystery," I informed him.

And like all other times, as I floated away, Palkia was left grumbling with balled fists and gritted teeth.

…

Though I should have taken my strange encounter with Palkia with a grain of salt, I forgot about it quickly. I was more concerned about where I was going than the things plaguing me in my past.

I was heading to a part of the castle that was seldom walked through. This particular hallway was usually dark and was out of the way if one wanted to go to the Fountain Room, Arceus' chambers, or the Launch Pad to Earth. As I ventured deeper, memories of a younger Universe invaded my mind with thoughts of a simpler time when strife was not yet something I owned, and calm quiet swept across the tiles like a lonely apparition. It was a cold place, lost in time, but it was comforting for me, as well as for Dialga. As I approached the hall's only stretch of windows, I could see the diamond dragon there waiting for my arrival. Despite how forgotten this section of the castle was, it was the best for star-gazing. At night, the windows faced the most spectacular constellations and gave the best view of every meteor shower that visited the Earth below.

These meetings of ours were secret – not even Lugia nor Rayquaza knew of them. We were simply alone in a place only we knew of. These encounters came to be simply by accident. It came to pass that the hallway brought us back to simpler times, and the time we spent here began as idle chatting space, somewhere not even Palkia would think to look. As we got to know each other more and more, the awkwardness in our tones faded and soon the talking minimized to nods and smiles. We would test each other, getting closer, brushing up against one another more, until sitting apart was a foreign way to be.

This night was not unlike all the others. As I approached, I quietly greeted him, the lights turning on in our eyes. I nuzzled up to him, our crowns meeting with sighs of relief and thankfulness for the other's existence. Life in the castle wasn't easy for either of us. Those meetings and our feelings had to be kept secret if we intended to keep Palkia and Ho-oh at bay. We didn't want rumors. We didn't want taunting or questions. We just wanted peace, alone, with one another.

In the light of millions of stars, the quiet hallway echoed with our giggles, but never gave us away. As I cuddled closer to him, I felt as though I could be at ease, and I could melt and shed my tough outer exterior enough to allow him in. He nibbled at my neck gently and surrounded me with his thick front legs. He clutched me tighter as we fell into our normal positions, and my heart skipped a beat as a heavy sigh pressed his chest close to mine.

The strangest part about these meetings is that feelings were never spoken about; no long and painful explanation about what was happening here was exchanged. It just so happened that my undying thirst for his embrace was returned whole-heartedly. Whenever we caught each other's glance, we would stop suddenly, hearts still racing, breathing still heavy, and exchange a silent understanding about what these feelings really were.

The best part about the whole ordeal is that the hallways acted as a second dimension, and we were never discovered.

Unfortunately, all deep dark secrets get out one way or the other, and I could understand why. From an outsider's point of view, my friendship with Dialga was not like any other friendship in the castle. For one, we were the only ones whose best friend was of the opposite planetary calling, for which we now understand as gender. On top of that, the way we interacted was closer and inadvertently more affectionate. Thankfully, most of the other deities chalked it up to be nothing more than a brother caring for his sister. All except one, of course.

"Oh, ladies, there she is. The dragon girl who associates with Mars," Ho-oh would laugh and shout, every time I drifted into the Fountain Room. I would ignore her and join Regice for a cool, wake-up bath. Unbeknownst to Ho-oh, most of the other deities did not pay any attention to her, except for the rest of Lugia's flock, who were her target audience anyway.

"Just ignore her," Regice would say. "She's just jealous of you because you're so pretty and she's not." The little iceberg was always so sweet, but I also knew that she was doing her best to make me her best friend.

It made sense. Besides Lugia's Flock, and Mew, most of the other deities were male, and often congregated by the Launch Pad. Cresselia was a familiar face in the Fountain Room, and though she probably would have made a better friend to Regice than me, she wanted nothing to do with any of us. It wasn't that she didn't want friends, but Ho-oh's boisterous attitude probably scared the lunar swan away. Cresselia did not want to be friends with Ho-oh, but she also did not want to be on the other end of her taunting, which was where Regice and I called hell. I would also learn many centuries later that she had forged a relationship with Darkrai, much like the one I had with Dialga, so it's really no surprise she kept herself quiet and separate from all the other females all those years.

"I don't know about you girls, but I certainly don't want a girl like that overhearing what we talk about!" Ho-oh continued. "She'll just go and spread the gossip at the Launch Pad, where she really hangs out!"

The rest of Lugia's Flock nodded in nervous agreement, and they hung on every word that came out of Ho-oh's beak. Over the centuries, Ho-oh had turned Lugia's Flock into her own. Lugia would often complain about this, but eventually he found as long as he had complete command, it didn't bother him what his harem did on the side.

Regice turned towards Ho-oh, and motioned her stubby arm up and down to shoo Ho-oh away. Though she lacked much of a face, Regice did her best to scowl at the rainbow bird.

"It's all right," I murmured to the iceberg, scrubbing my golden plates with my tail spikes. "I have dealt with this for millennia, and the best course of action is to make no action at all."

I shook off the excess water, and attempted to leave the Fountain Room. Unfortunately, Ho-oh had overheard me, and she was not one to be taken lightly. Full of herself, she stopped me in the hall.

"I will not be ignored," she growled at me from behind.

I answered against my own judgment, "What else do you expect of me? I will not sit down and cry as you make a mockery of me. I am above petty bickering."

Ho-oh chuckled, and though I tried not to let her see it, this made me uneasy. She squinted her eyes at me with a malevolent smirk.

"Oh, so you think you're unlike the rest, do you?" she challenged me, "You think I can't bring you down?"

"You have in the past," I admitted. "But with time comes strength. I'm tired of your trivial arguments and undying need to be on top. If you want to push someone around, I will not be a scapegoat for it."

We glared at each other. I was prepared to demonstrate to her how much I knew about her, even if she herself didn't realize it.

"So, you know me so well, but," she lingered and waited until I was hooked to continue. "I know you just as well."

"Oh?"

"Yes. You're a loner and no matter how many how many friends you have on the outside, the truth is, you're only interested in one," she read me like a book. "I know what you're up to with Dialga."

"Really? Do you, now?" I asked nonchalantly. I could tell she was just trying to scare me. Dialga and I were aware people had their opinions on what we were, but no one could possibly know the extent to which our friendship went.

"I do, actually," she assured. "And I'll let everyone know about your bizarre relationship."

I tried to brush it off, "How bizarre could it be? So, we are each other's best friend. We may be of opposite planets, but-"

She cut me off, "Oh, it is bizarre! I see the way you two act around each other. How you stare, how close you get to one another, how you touch. It is more than just an innocent sibling bond, and it is well beyond a friendship."

I growled at her. Of everyone to question the façade we attempted, it had to be her. I suppose I should not have expected any less. Ho-Oh was desperate to get dirt on me, and she probably watched me very closely, looking for anything unusual she could bring up in her gossip.

"So, what do you think it is?" I asked her, knowing full well that no one had been informed as to what a relationship like the one I shared with Dialga was.

Furrowing her brow so that a lump of feathers stood up against her hard beak, she said, "I haven't a clue, and Mew was no help. She'd do anything to protect you."

I smirked, having defeated my foe once again.

"Don't think you're out of the storm, yet, dragon girl," she hissed. "If you'd like to keep things the way they are, you'd better not show your ugly face at the Meet and Greet. No mortal wants to meet the goddess of death, I'll have you know."

That sounded familiar. I shook my head, "And I've been meaning to ask, why does the Meet and Greet mean so much to you? Why are you so obsessed with trying to keep me away from it? You even have Palkia working for you!"

"I'm not admitting anything to the likes of you," she said. "But if you need a hint, I hate you and I don't think anyone else should have to be in contact with you."

I rolled my eyes. Well, of course that was the depth of the reason. Though it was apparent Palkia didn't want my attendance for fear that I might look better than him, for Ho-Oh the notion wasn't so deep. It was petty loathing on her part, for the simple fact that, unlike all of the other deities, I didn't bend to her will. I saw through her and exposed her, and she hated it. To her misery, the Meet and Greet would be an ample place for mortals to see her true colors and mine. Her vanity had gone to her brain the moment she popped into existence. She was an attention seeker, above all things and she knew the mortals would be more interested and give more attention to Arceus' children, the ones who control all basic aspects of their world, than to the bird that seldom made rainbows for them. That was the one and true reasoning, even if she never admitted it.

Now that she had a leg up on me, though, she felt like she was in control, and she was half right. It was true no one could describe what Dialga and I had, so her threats were pretty meaningless. On the other hand, I didn't need to deal with the strange looks. I didn't want people to start reevaluating what they thought was going on with us. I simply wanted to be left alone, but that could never be. Not with Ho-Oh breathing down my neck.

I turned to float away, attempting to leave the assumption that I would or would not attend the Meet and Greet up in the air. Ho-Oh stared after me, waiting for an answer I wouldn't give.

"You better not show up if you know what's good for you," she hissed.

I didn't answer.

…

I did, however, go straight to my tower, and to my relief, Mew appeared from the window. She looked happy to see me, and plopped down on my back as I lay curled up on the floor.

"I haven't seen you in ages!" she started, folding her short leg over the other. She lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling with her arms folded, acting as a head rest.

"At least I've made more friends," I said to her. "You had been so busy, I didn't want to bother you."

"I was busy," she said distantly. "But not anymore! I'm all done!"

I was shocked. Mew had been working for eons, to the point where I thought her work would never be done.

"So I suppose that means the big Meet and Greet thing is right around the corner," I said, though I don't know why. It was the last thing I wanted to talk about.

"Yes, it's very soon," the little feline told me. "In fact, that's why I'm here! I've been going around telling everyone that it's in two rotations of the Earth and we'll be having it in Arceus' Great Hall."

I swallowed. So much for having time to decide on whether I was going to appear at it or not.

"Is Arceus making it a mandatory event?" I asked after a small pause.

Mew got up and looked at me hard and confused at the question. "I didn't think he needed to say."

I sighed. It was time to buckle down and make Mew a female friend I could entrust my secrets to. "You know I have been having trouble with Ho-Oh, right?"

Mew nodded, but then said, "Wait, I thought you tried to make amends with her."

"The key word there is 'tried'," I muttered. "She wouldn't hear of it, and I've been taking the brunt of her never ending torment."

Mew winced, probably feeling as though she could have done more to help me. What she or anyone could have done, is still beyond me, though. Ho-Oh was capable of doing anything to ruin me, inside and out; to my face and behind my back.

"And now, she and Palkia have made it their top priority to get me not to go to the Meet and Greet," I explained.

"That's ridiculous," Mew quickly responded. "She can't force you to-"

I cut her off, "And then she can. Apparently my friendship with Dialga is much too bizarre for her or anyone obtuse enough to listen to her."

"Well," Mew started, deep in thought. "Is it?"

I sighed in frustration. I was immediately regretting bringing this up. "Yes…no…I don't know! Our friendship is different, but I don't see how it's anyone's business."

I began again after a long pause. "When I'm with Dialga…it's a different experience than when I'm with Rayquaza, or Regice, or Lugia. I feel freer. But even before we started spending time together, I always pined for him. All I ever wanted was to be near him."

Thinking back to those days when I would dream about the amorous times I eventually had with Dialga, a slight and soft smile spread across my face. Such nostalgia overcame me, for I felt as though all of this bliss would end soon. We could not be as long as I had enemies.

I giggled half-heartedly at how ridiculous and how hopeless I had become.

"It came to be that…he felt the same way," I ended my confession.

Mew nodded. "Yes, I knew all that."

My eyes grew wide. "Then…why…why didn't you say something?"

She chortled, "It's so much healthier for you to say it out loud, though."

"Yes, true, maybe," I said in a panic. "But I spent the last millennium confused about these feelings…which I still can't describe, thank you very much."

"You and Dialga are in love with each other," Mew explained, in a dreamy sort of way as she lay back down with her arms folded under her head. She was obviously enjoying this. "You have been since the universe began, though I don't think Arceus intended for it to happen."

I gulped. It was exactly as I feared.

"How did you know?"

"I'm psychic, remember?" she joked. "But, one doesn't need to be psychic to notice it between you two. There was always this force of fate pulling you together, and that was something I found truly unique and inspiring. Despite all of the uncertainty, the intense want for the other…love is bliss. So, it's something I instilled in all Mortal Pokemon, with Arceus' approval of course. It will allow them to enjoy life to the fullest, and fill the Earth with their kind."

Though Mew's take on it and inspiration was truly interesting, I still couldn't get over that my feelings had a name this whole time. For all I had been through, love was not just a term, it was a state of being, and my entire existence had been enthralled in it.

"But, like I said," Mew interrupted my thoughts. "I don't know if Arceus intended for us deities to feel that way. He seemed to only see a use in it if it meant enticing mortals to proliferate. Deities have no need to proliferate. He may just find it useless and an obvious distraction."

I sighed, frustrated and helpless. Everything Mew was saying were things I had already thought about. "I honestly don't want to lose this," I told her at last.

"I know, but Arceus also doesn't want anything to go wrong at the event," Mew informed me. "You should tell him about Ho-Oh and Palkia. Perhaps he can-"

"You know I don't want to do that," I said sternly. "Either way, I lose in this mess, which is, excuse my immaturity, unfair! I haven't done anything wrong, yet I will undoubtedly have the most precious thing to me taken away."

"It's the only way to get past the Meet and Greet without any hiccups," she urged.

Despite my selfishness and best efforts to think of excuses, I eventually agreed with Mew.

The very next morning, as the Universe castle passed between the Earth and the Sun, I quickly made my way to Arceus' chamber, located in the middle of the castle, an offshoot from the main hall where Mew and I first met. I was careful not to engage in any chitchat with friends, and took great care to slip into the shadows and sneak past Palkia and Ho-Oh's notice.

As I entered Arceus' main chamber, I became nervous. I hadn't spoken to my Father in eons. There was never any need, and I was, even at that point, too proud to admit I needed help. Like my Father, I truly wanted this event to go off without a hitch. Despite what really happened, I wanted to enjoy the party, converse with mortals, and make everyone see I wasn't the monster my enemies made me out to seem.

Arceus' main chamber was open to all – no doors closed off access to him, yet I still felt as if I didn't belong there. The room inside was large, but contained, and I noticed Arceus floating inside, meditating. His plates circled him, and he was concentrating – on what, I'll never know.

Feeling as though I was probably about to disturb him, I made the motion to turn away and forget the whole thing. Come what may, I decided. Unfortunately, he knew I had been there, and spoke to catch me mid-slink.

"Is there a problem, my daughter?" Arceus asked with a nuance of exasperation.

"Father," I bowed to him. "Yes, there is. For many hundreds of years, I've been tormented by Ho-Oh, and I fear our differences may negatively impact the Great Meet and Greet."

"Is that so?" Arceus opened his eyes. "Funny thing. Ho-Oh was just here herself and said the same of you."

I gulped as he approached closer, and squinted his eyes in scrutiny.

"Excuse me, Father, but she is a liar," I tried, to ultimately no avail. "Both she and Palkia, for the past hundred years have tried everything in an attempt to force me to skip out on the event."

"Well, we can't have that. You must attend. And you will not cause uproar at this event."

I shook my head in disbelief. This couldn't be happening. "Father, I'm afraid that if I go, the two of them will introduce me to the mortals as a goddess of death. They will try to make everyone afraid of me."

"Giratina," he started, his patience running thin. "You are my child, and Ho-Oh is of Mew. You cannot put yourself on her level for it is lower than yours. You are her deity. Do not waste your time on her, for she is not as strong as you."

Though his words were encouraging, it became apparent to me that Arceus truly knew none of us. We were acquaintances at best. Although it was flattering that he believed I was infinitely stronger and more respectable than Ho-Oh could ever dream to be, it was obvious that notion had no foothold in reality. Though I always hated to admit it, Ho-Oh was truly much more persistent and cunning than I. I was her prey as she hunted my weaknesses.

I nodded to my Father, giving up what was always a pipe dream that he'd step in and help me. I was on my own, as always.


	7. Chapter 7

Chap 7

I wish things had not panned out the way they had. For millennia, I have dreamt that I had not been so rash. I suppose feelings die down after so many years, though I could never blame myself for what I did. It's not as if I figured I could do no wrong, but when anyone is put under that kind of pressure, something has to give.

The Great Meet and Greet was supposed to be a sort of ball or reception for all the representatives of the mortal Pokemon to personally meet every Legendary and learn their true purpose and essence. They were to learn what we did to make their lives the way they were so that they could properly worship us and call on us should any problems arise. I expected the party to go off without a hitch, actually. I expected my Father to talk with Ho-oh or Palkia and nothing would go wrong after all. Oh how horribly naïve I was!

As the great star's yellow beams lay to rest on the Universe Castle, I stirred from my sleep. The bright light hit my eyes and I awoke as excitement filled my chest. Finally, we could get this thing over with, I thought as I shook sleep from my eyes. My room harbored no door, for I simply phased through the walls on a normal day. However, today was different. I approached the wall, thinned my very matter and attempted to cross over, only to hit my face on the brick and mortar. I became even more transparent and tried again, only to fail once more.

I was beyond enraged at this point, and returned to my normal density. I gritted my teeth. I knew exactly who was responsible for this, the only one in existence who could change the matter of walls to a density that not even a ghost could penetrate – Palkia, and most likely with the idea from Ho-oh. I had to get out somehow, though. I knew at this point the event had started and Dialga would be waiting for me, unbeknownst to my imprisonment. If I did not appear, Arceus would be cross with me as well. So, I did the next best thing.

Lifting my heavy, spiked tail I whipped it around and smacked the wall with a great deal of force. It cracked, but remained strong. Again and again I whacked the wall with my tail, my spikes leaving gaping holes in the bricks each time. Despite the fact its density was other-worldly, it was much more brittle than I expected. With one last thrust, I broke free, sending bits of brick crashing down onto a roof below. I watched as the incredibly dense chunk of rock penetrated through the castle as if it were made of clay. I could not be bothered with repairing it – Arceus would have to understand and make Palkia clean up the mess he made.

I slithered out of my room and towards the Great Hall where the Meet and Greet was taking place. I was thankful I had freed myself, but more irate with Palkia and Ho-oh than I had ever been in my life. I had always taken Ho-Oh's taunting about the Great Meet and Greet as an empty threat. It always seemed to me that she did it simply to make me feel small, to no avail. So, it comes as no surprise that, along with my frustration, I was also hit off-guard.

As I made my way to Arceus' Great Hall, I grit my teeth harder and harder thinking of all the different ways I could physically harm Ho-Oh or Palkia. My rage was out of control. I phased through the wall nearest the Great Hall, half-expecting to hit my face on the bricks as I did before. Fortunately, I got through without difficulty, and quickly zoomed towards the reception, my rage having ignited into an inferno. I was so angry I felt as though I could not get there fast enough.

Through my outrage, I could still hear the party beginning. The sound of rushing water, perhaps from a new fountain created just for the occasion, gushed over purified metal. The chatter of hundreds of alien voices echoed through the halls. My guess was that the Mortals were already there and had made themselves at home. I heard cheering and whistling as a great voice announced something about Regice and her brothers. I imagined the Pokemon that shared their elements felt a great kinship to them in some way; that they were represented in the council of "Legendaries", as mortals call us. Thoughts like this sadden me now, for I am the only legendary of the ghost element, and I am known for such horrible things.

My pace had slowed as I listened to the voices. Somehow this far-off bliss quieted my anger and turned it into utter loneliness and an acceptance that maybe my perpetrators were right about me all along. It was not obvious to me that anyone even realized I was missing, let alone infuriated, upset, or worried I had not yet shown myself. Everyone was having a good time, and not even those I considered friends had asked anyone to hold the party on my behalf or send someone to see what was taking me so damn long. Nothing. Another eruption of cheers slowed my pace to a full stop. I listened intently, my gaze now at the floor. It was then that Ho-Oh had already won, as I coiled my tail into a base and thought about how she was right – no one wanted to meet me. I was the outcast, in every fiber of my being. The very matter that made me was different from everyone else in that room. I was defeated.

As I turned to head back to my room – no use feeling sorry for myself in a dark hallway – the sudden sound of flat, silver-tipped feet thudding against the tiles in a gallop stopped me.

"Gira!" his voice beckoned. The gallop slowed, and Dialga approached me out of breath. "Is this where you've been the whole time? Why not join us in the Great Hall?"

My snake-like body arched around so that I could face him, but still with every intention of slinking back to my room like a good little victim. I squinted at him, my mouth slightly open in a confused manner, my feelings of betrayal still haunting me. How dare he ask why I had not joined them…after all I have been through just this morning!

His face softened, somehow reading all of my pain off my stare. "I was worried when everything started and you still hadn't shown up. Mew and I couldn't get anyone to postpone it, but, then again, I also didn't think you were _too_ far away…"

His voice trailed off. He probably felt as though there was more he could have done, even in all the confusion. I had already forgiven him. After all, not even I had expected Palkia or Ho-Oh to go to such extremes to keep me from the reception. As I explained to him what had happened, how I had been imprisoned in my own room, with only Palkia to blame, his eyes widened in disbelief.

He shook his head and concluded, "Well, I'm glad you were able to get out – you're not down yet. Don't let them have their way with you. Come to the Meet and Greet, it will do you good."

"And risk them mortifying me in front of all the mortals?" I cried, my voice and my resolve buckling under all the stress I had ever endured in this ongoing conflict. I was finally breaking, finally snapping.

But Dialga, ever stern and ever my rock, said calmly, "If they are going to say terrible things about you, they will do it whether you are there to witness them of not. You might as well be there to defend yourself."

I lowered my gaze at this logic, for I had lost all of mine. It was more suitable to me to let the rumors spread, as horrible and inaccurate as they were, than simply be there to hear them from their familiar sources. I was unbearably selfish unto myself. I deserved my own defense, and I would not give it for fear of emotional sting. I was pitiful, pathetic, and full of flaws. Maybe Ho-Oh had reason to hate me? Perhaps the bird saw me as full of myself as I had always perceived her. Everyone in between just had to choose who was more tolerable. Perhaps Cresselia was the only one with a head on her shoulders. I hated myself so much at that instant.

"I love you," Dialga murmured as he wrapped his front leg around me. My face contorted in confusion. I wanted to ask him why, but my voice had abandoned me. He did not read it that way, though.

He became bashful, "Mew said you'd know what that meant."

Through my self-pity, a chuckle broke through. That was Dialga – an awkward genius.

"I'm guessing I'm doing something right?" he asked, a smile eradicating his wistful demeanor from before.

I pressed my forehead against his.

"I love you, too," I said, "but I can't promise you we'll be together for long after this. I don't know what I'll do…how I, or Arceus, will react…"

"No," he cut me off, "I will make sure that nothing bad happens. This is supposed to be fun."

Looking into his ruby eyes with a meek smile, I shook my head and said, "I know you will try."

…

Dialga led me to the Great Hall, not too far from where we had been standing. We squeezed into the hall, attempting to be as inconspicuous as two dragons can be. My brow was furrowed with worry and I swallowed nervously as we tried to find Mew. The hall was brimming with life. Everywhere I turned, there was a Pokemon I had never seen or heard of before. Refreshments had been made, and laid out perfectly as a sort of buffet. Every type of berry was present, and snacks made from them adorned the tables lining the walls of the Great Hall. It all looked so delicious.

The other Legendaries were scattered amongst the crowd, speaking with representatives of various species. Across the room, next to a refreshment table, I caught a glance of Regice as she spoke with a Sneasel and Snover. Turning my head again, I noticed Rayquaza laughing whole-heartedly with Lugia and a group of bird Pokemon. Even Kyogre and Groudon had been awoken for the party, even if they stood at opposite sides of the wide room. It was then my old self came back. If two sworn enemies like those two could get along for this shin-dig, Ho-Oh and I could, too.

I could tell Dialga noticed me. He probably could tell that the tension and agitation from before was slowly leaving me and I could relax. Unfortunately, my mind was still plagued with thoughts of getting even with my enemies. Nothing had ever worked in the past; neither peace nor a lack of attention seemed to stop them on their quest to get under my scales. Even as I tried to feel like just another Pokemon in a sea of my own kind, the ever looming realization that I was fundamentally different than everyone else was still haunting me.

It was at that precise moment, of course, that Palkia took the stage. He tapped a claw on his armor, making a klinking sound loud enough for everyone in the room to turn around and look up at him. Thousands of eyes would be watching what came next; an infinite number of minds would forever remember it as well.

"It has just come to my attention that my wonderful brother and sister have finally arrived to our special Meet and Greet," he said, extending a clawed paw in our general direction.

I was wary. Dialga was hopeful.

"Of course, that loud crashing before was my lovely sister Giratina destroying parts of the castle, as she sometimes does," Palkia jabbed at me, giggling in between words. On stage. For every mortal to hear.

I stood frozen. So, it was not just a ruse to make me late to the ball – it was a plot to make a direct attack on my character. However, I was not one to give up. Dialga was right – I was here to defend myself. I deserved that much.

"I do no such thing on a normal basis! You take that lie back this instant!" I was losing my cool, and becoming frantic, though. I was no longer the composed, level-headed girl I had strained to be all these years. I was not prepared, already caught off-guard, and I had no wit at that moment to battle with him. All I could do was bark at him to quit his torment. Palkia would not let up, though. It was as if he had received training from a certain bird I had only known as an enemy.

"Oh, please, sister, that makes no sense when it's precisely your room that's been destroyed this fine evening," Palkia went on.

Before I could whine further, Dialga stepped in. "Brother, knock off this nonsense this instant. Giratina is of the ghost element – she can phase through walls very easily, as I'm sure the other ghost Pokemon can attest to."

He arched his neck around so as to search the crowd for supporters of his claim. A Haunter and a Sableye visibly nodded in agreement.

"If Giratina could not phase through her walls then she had no choice but to break them, and it is only you that -"

Palkia cut him off swiftly, "Ah yes, but her violence is evident, as she is the harbinger of death, after all. The representative, if you will."

With this blunt statement, my fate was sealed. A frightened gasp escaped from every mortal throat in the room, and it felt as if the entire castle tilted under the weight of every one of them as they moved away from me. They stared, their eyes full of fear, as if at any moment, I may swallow their Mew-bestowed soul and take it to some other-worldly realm. As if a maniacal laugh were to erupt from my bosom, and admit that yes, I was evil incarnate, how do you do?

"Yes, the grim reaper, the -" Palkia began to reap in the fear, but Dialga put his silver-studded foot down, cracking the elegant tiles underneath.

Dialga roared, "Brother, I had asked you to stop these lies! And you have gone against my wishes!"

"Okay, then tell us, Giratina, what is your sovereign duties to the Pokemon before us today?" Palkia was challenging me, and I could feel Ho-oh somewhere in the crowd just waiting to take advantage of what I had to say next.

I was finally given the floor, and Palkia waited patiently for me to dig my own grave. But I was naïve. I floated closer to the crowd as they cowered in fear. I was livid, but I gathered my strength and began to speak as softly as I could muster, feeling hopeful that I could right my sullied public image. "I am the guardian of the Reverse World."

But Palkia would not even let me finish. "Yes, yes, the sole operator and resident of the Reverse World, a universe very unlike this world, the one I had forged. It is a world that if any of you mortals were to visit it, you would be vaporized immediately."

The mortals gasped again, and jumped back. I was officially a monster in their eyes. I could see then that there was no changing their minds about me. Trying to explain my duties was hard enough to describe to other deities, and I was sure my voice would be tuned out in favor of shivering in terror. This was all Palkia's fault, and his alone. I honestly do not believe that if it had been Ho-oh up there, the mortals would have believed her so easily. No, it was Palkia's relation to me, the fact that we were celestial siblings, and somewhat like two sides to the same coin, that his take on me was so powerful. So powerful, in fact, that it could override my own take. I suppose if I were evil, I'd never admit it to a crowd of prey, and so, that day, Palkia put himself on a pedestal close to our Father, and put me in Hell.

I grit my teeth, seething in rage; my actions that followed are ones I'm only regretful of in retrospect. I had always been independent, and despite my sorrow and self-doubt I had exhibited in front of Dialga just minutes before, I had always been there for myself. So, it was no surprise, after being put over the edge, I attacked Palkia. Summoning all of the dark energy my anger had conjured up, I focused it within my mouth as a tight, glowing ball that I spit at my brother. Even though I was angry, this show of aggression was merely a slap on the back of the head for my brother. It was simply to show him I had had it with him. Dialga stood perfectly still, mouth agape as he turned his head towards Palkia.

Another round of gasps filled the room as I bared my sharp fangs at him, growling. Palkia took this as an opportunity to release his own frustrations with me, collecting energy between his palms and launching it towards me. Without thinking, I became transparent, and the Aura Sphere went right through me, crashing into the tiles and sending sharp shards in every direction. It was then pandemonium broke out in the Great Hall, as mortals ran for their lives and attempted to escape the premises. The other deities assisted in shielding them, as I disappeared completely, reappearing behind Palkia and tackling him off the stage. My Shadow Force had hit him with so much power he had tumbled across the floor until hitting the far wall. The wall cracked, and bits of rock fell to the floor. Now Palkia was angry.

In the eyes of the crowd, I was the bad guy, the evil one that needed to be contained. Palkia was their hero, doing just that. From the corner of my eye, I could see Ho-oh as she helped to shield the mortals from Palkia's and my onslaught. She smirked at me before turning her head and giving her full attention to the Mortals. Just like Palkia, she had used me to bolster her own image. Forever more, Palkia and Ho-oh would be known on Earth as saviors – it was all part of the plan.

Palkia got up and shook off the rock from his back. His mouth contorted into a snarl, and his voice had transformed into a deep growl. He summoned another Aura Sphere, this time holding it in his paws as he came at me with incredible speed. I hissed, and prepared to become transparent again. Having had enough of watching, Dialga roared, and placed himself between us.

It happened so quickly that Palkia could not stop himself, and forced his Aura Sphere directly into Dialga's shoulder. Like a mountain, Dialga took the hit and remained standing, even with Palkia's claws dug into his flesh. Dialga growled heavily as he bared his fangs, the sound originating deep in his chest and vibrating in his throat. Palkia bared his fangs as well, becoming more furious as he realized he was on the wrong side of this confrontation. The brother he had tried so hard to impress and become best friends with was on my side and he now finally grasped the concept. I hissed from behind Dialga, gearing up for an all out war.

It's really too bad we were interrupted. I think a lot of good and understanding could have come out of it. It is the Dragon way, after all, when all else fails. From his private chamber, Arceus made his grand appearance. Glowing as his white fur reflected the Great Star's rays, he dazzled everyone in the room. Every mortal and deity bowed down immediately, their faces almost touching the porcelain tiles. Everyone but Palkia, Dialga, and me, that is. We were still too riled up and angry to move anything but our heads to acknowledge his almighty presence.

"What is all this racket?" Arceus demanded. "First I hear the sounds of castle walls crumbling and then I hear this all out brawl. What do you three think you're doing?"

Our Father was beside himself, pacing and shaking his head violently, his voice getting louder with each question.

"I can explain, Father," Palkia piped up. My eyes widened; my doom was near.

"Yes, Palkia, explain how my three children ruined the first ever gathering of deity and mortal," Arceus gibed.

Palkia put his hands together, Dialga's blood still staining his claws. "Well, as far as the first sound goes, that's all Giratina. She destroyed her tower."

Dialga growled, "Palkia, that's not the whole story and you know it!"

Arceus turned his attention to me. I was surprisingly calm. So jaded from the battle and the endless torment I had endured for centuries, I simply stared back at God. Dialga, on the other hand, was still fighting for me.

"Tell him the truth!"

"Oh, and Giratina also hit me first. I was just defending myself."

"Liar!"

Dialga and Palkia butted heads and would have begun their fight once more if Arceus had not spoken to me in such a sweet tone of voice.

"Giratina, is that all true?" he asked, his voice almost inaudible.

I sighed, "Yes." There was no use lying here. I figured honesty was my best defense here.

"But I can explain-" I started, but Arceus fired up again and cut me off.

"There is no excuse for this insolence!"

"But if you would just listen to me…"

"No! You are the one who should have listened! You have been nothing but trouble, nothing but anti-social, and unwilling to be a part of our greater collective!" Arceus raged.

Each insult came like a nail dug into me. My own Father did not even believe in my worth. Merciless and in a fit, he simply wanted nothing else than to scold someone, and who better than me?

"Father, none of that is true. If you'd just listen," Dialga tried, but Arceus was too far enraged.

Arceus snapped, "Don't say a word; you're in just as much trouble as your sister."

"But, Father, this could all be avoided if you would hear what she has to say," Dialga argued, but Arceus would not have it.

Lifting his golden-polished hoof, he lashed out at Dialga, hitting him in his damaged shoulder and pushing him down onto the tile. Seeing this seemed to shut my brain off. In that instance, my want to save Dialga from his pain overrode every single check-point in my mind that should have told me what I did next was a bad idea.

Summoning dark energy into a ball between my jaws, I shot a weak Shadow Ball at Arceus. Having no plates engaged, Arceus was normal and the Shadow Ball went right through him. It didn't hurt him. It didn't even touch him. However, the simple fact that I had even dared to challenge him was enough for the volcano he had become to erupt.

Leaving Dialga to suffer on the floor, he turned to me, eyes wide with disbelief and outrage. As he approached, his hooves clicked ominously on the tiles, like a clock ticking down to something terrible.

"You dare attack me?" he said in a hauntingly calm voice.

I lowered my head, but only to glare at him more intensely. I had nothing left to say. Having been through so much, my only bit of apprehension was in wondering what he was thinking about doing to me.

His voice now boomed, "You dare attack me? How dare you!"

Engaging a pink-colored plate, he quickly shot a bright beam of light at me. The power from the attack left me breathless, and rocketed me against the wall behind the stage. I gasped for breath as I collapsed. Arceus walked nonchalantly onto the stage, those golden heels clicking, towards me. Engaging all of his plates, he began the process that defines my legendary tale. I still remember feeling my body run ice cold and numb as Arceus used his combined powers to completely change me.

From my elegant serpentine body, Arceus molded me into the monster every mortal has nightmares about. My spikes were turned into six clunky, gold-studded legs and my ghostly tentacles transformed into two devilish wings. I didn't scream, though. I wouldn't give my enemies that satisfaction. However the worst part about the entire ordeal was that Arceus took a piece of me. From somewhere within, he pulled out a bit of my essence. Upon completion, he dropped me and I landed heavily on my new feet. I was so heavy I could barely stand.

With his psychic force, Arceus held up a golden orb, and began to explain what it was. "This is the Griseous Orb. It is the only thing that will turn you back into your Origin Form. Otherwise, when in the Real World, you will be in this form, your Altered Form."

Arceus then turned towards the Earth, visible like a giant blue marble through the open ceiling. He then tossed it down to the planet below, landing in a random place I could not trace.

He then turned back to me and said, "Under any other circumstances, your Origin Form can only be viewed in the Reverse World."

And with that, Arceus summoned all his strength as he torn at the fabric of reality to open up a portal into the new Reverse World. Through sheer godly will, Arceus had expanded my small domain, once scrunched into a tall tower, into another dimension where he inevitably imprisoned me. Using his powers again, he forced me through the portal. All at once, my body changed back into my original self. However, before I could escape, Arceus blocked my path.

"You are banished from the Real World for your violence. Forever more you will gaze upon this world in silence," and the portal snapped shut.

I remember wincing. I remember feeling alone, trapped, defeated. However, it did not take long for my realm to become tolerable. Not long after Arceus closed the portal did platforms adorned with remnants of scrapped ideas appear. Far off stars illuminated my dwelling. And not long after that did the windows to the Real World appear to forever tease me. I could always see the Real World. I watched how it changed and evolved over time, and I passed many years doing just that.

I've overheard banter from mortals through my invisible windows many times, and it's the only reason I know anything about the Real World, or about what happened after the portal closed. I've heard that Palkia and Dialga were also punished. They too were given their own realms to reside separately. I heard the Universe castle was dismantled and the deities now live among the mortals. I heard that Ho-oh created her own band of deities by giving life to three Pokemon that perished in a tower. Funny, I never knew she could do that. I suppose she finally got what she wanted. I've heard of new deities I never met and seen them from time to time through my looking glasses.

It's been a couple million years and in that time I've gotten used to my predicament. I've gotten used to overhearing mortals falsely tell their youngsters that if they misbehave that I might come from within the shadows and gobble them up. Or that I appear at an ancient graveyard in some undisclosed location. Silly mortals.

But the one thing I can't get used to is how I never got the chance to say goodbye to Dialga or apologize or thank him. Time exists here, though, and many days it's the only comfort I have. Arceus was never known to be set in his ways. He changes his mind a lot, from what I've seen over the years. Some days, my windows to the real world are so thin I can smell flowers that don't exist in my realm. This gives me hope.

Perhaps one day…we'll be together again.


End file.
